A Matter for a Future Year — Dean Wesley Smith

A single Seeder scout ship trapped on the edge of a distant, uncharted galaxy. Chairman Peter German holds the fate of the three thousand people on the Pale Light.
Main drives mysteriously not working, the ship hobbles along at sub-light speed with not enough supplies to reach the nearest Earth-like planet
The Chairman faces a hard, hard choice. He must find the solution.
Galaxy spanning ships, billions of civilizations, the Seeders Universe stories and novels cover it all. But “A Matter for a Future Year” brings it all down to a single human choice. And the price paid by those who risk to explore outward.